Reviews

Sixteen Horses by Greg Buchanan

jessica_reading_writing's review against another edition

3.0

Overview: Okay so this one had a lot of promise. The plot intrigued me as I thought it would be a little different to the usual police/murder investigation books. It was a slow burn, but thanks to the strange layout it was easy to read. The writing style was unique and...odd...I'm not saying it was bad, but it was just odd. Let me explain. The sentences were very short and each one started on a new paragraph. There was hardly any detail, just short and sharp sentences, which made it quick to read but hard to follow at times.

Good Points: As mentioned above it was easy to read, and the plot was a little different. I don't really have much else to say other than that...

Not so Good Points: It wasn't a bad book, but it wasn't great either. Once you get used to the writing style then the plot began to make sense. To be honest I didn't care for the characters and I've already forgotten what happened at the end...

Overall an okay crime thriller, but not really one I'd recommend.

joceyreads's review against another edition

3.0

Bleak is the word I think best describes this book. Desolate, perhaps. Also, confusing. It’s well written and intriguing but it’s soooo confusing. I’m still not sure I understand the whole book. What was happening to Alec? I’m still confused. It’s still an enthralling and very different read.

davechua's review

4.0

Starts with a harrowing and surreal scene; sixteen horses buried with their heads and tails cut off. Unfortunately, the story meanders in the second half, losing most of its momentum. Have mixed feelings about the ending, and felt it could have been tighter.

darkskybooks's review against another edition

3.0

This reads as a more literary take on crime fiction. I am not the biggest fan of literary fiction - I find it overly verbose and dry and unfortunately this suffers from its pretentions. I like my genre fiction to be told in a punchy way, and this does not have that. It almost has a gothic feel at times, but somehow it falls a bit flat on that too.

Opening with the discovery of 16 horse heads the tale follows a specialist animal crime consultant trying to unravel the mysteries of a dying coastal town. The setting is dreary and grim and a level of suspense and horror is generated as the cruelties present in the town are uncovered. There is a lot of potential in the stories being told.

Unfortunately it all struggled to get passed the overly written prose for me.

julia77724's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

zoer03's review against another edition

5.0

I am not quite sure where to begin…. This book is at once both disturbing and yet at the same time holds a much darker meaning. There is something truly terrifying and upsetting about the abuse and yes murder of animals especially when they can’t cry out and get justice for their cruel slaughter…. Until that person or someone kills a human being, we don’t see or use the same form of punishment for anyone who abuses creatures. This book is quite heavy with issues such as depression, illness, a lot of death and rage and hate but it’s also clever in that it makes you go down several paths trying to work out what’s going on and who’s causing all of this chaos and misery on this backwater town. There are some quite gruesome scenes of violence against people and animals and it’s not something we should hide from. It’s also not as bad as I thought or have been told it’s dark yes but that’s what comes with the setting.

wcaleniemary's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

sar411's review against another edition

dark sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

lizzillia's review against another edition

4.25

Wow! Such a dark and claustrophobic read. I don't think the sun shone once. This is a debut novel and WARNING for animal abuse. It opens with the discovery of 16 horses head buried in a circle with one eye left uncovered to gaze up into the sky. The tails have been removed and are nearby. With something so bizarre a forensic vet in called in, Cooper Allen and she works with DS Alec Nichols. Alec's wife died of cancer and he lives with his teenage son. And that's where we start. As time progresses more and more layers are revealed in this dying seaside town of Illmarsh. This is a town where the people are broken, there is a history of abuse and killings - human and animal. There are poisonings and contamination and everyone that you meet seems haunted. It is impossible to get close to any character - not even the main two. It will not appeal to some for two reasons - one is the dark subject matter and the second is the fragmented writing style as the reader is switched from different places, times - almost like watching a dark film. However, I found it engrossing even thoiugh at times it was very uncomfortable.

bi_bibliophile's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Why did no one ever question where the rest of the bodies were?